Ecommerce: New Horizons
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
In 2005 the largest ecommerce sites were for the following top
five products or services:
Travel
Computer /peripherals/PDA
Apparel & accessories
Office supplies
Consumer packaged goods
The strongest advertiser in 2005 was Vonage Holdings Corp. who
specializes in providing Internet phone options.
It's safe to say that when you look at the billions of dollars
spent in ecommerce transactions there are lessons for brick and
mortar stores that have resisted a move to cyberspace.
For example many bookstores are closing shop due to the heavy
competition of online retailers like amazon.com. Many
bookstores wrongly believed they had a loyal customer base and
would likely weather the 'Internet fad', but a lack of brand
loyalty has left them baffled.
Some stores reinvented themselves and delivered a much improved
brick and mortar store with sitting areas, coffee shop and an
ONLINE STORE.
As malls and strip malls have replaced downtown stores with
great history these retailers are left to flounder in a sea of
'what was' and 'what may never be'.
All over the United States a retail revolution is taking place.
Large box stores are finding a significant amount of their sales
conducted online. Stores that added an online presence early are
seeing significant growth in their online sales as their brick
and mortar sales diminish.
One of the primary reasons Internet users give for conducting
an online purchase has to do with the frustration of actually
going to a store, searching for an item and then waiting in
line to check out. An Internet purchase can be conducted
privately, quickly and from the comfort of home.
Brick and mortar stores may have success for a specific segment
of the population that do not have a computer, find it difficult
to operate or simply do not believe a computer is necessary.
However, as the years go by those holdouts become fewer and
fewer.
As ecommerce continues to grow netrepreneurs are becoming more
sophisticated in their use of online marketing terms such as
SEO, affiliate relations and PPC. In many ways these terms help
get the word out about your site and allow customers to find it
much more quickly.
The thought of starting a new business on the web can seem
daunting to traditional business owners, but for those that
have taken the plunge it has become a welcome source of revenue
and provides a connection to a growing community of prospects.
An ecommerce site will not be an overnight success, but it can
be the means of shifting reliance on customers with a
face-to-face contact to one that may be less informal, but adds
significantly to your long-term ability to do business.
About The Author: Scott Lindsay is a web developer and
entrepreneur. He is the founder of HighPowerSites and many
other web projects. HighPowerSites is the easiest
do-it-yourself website builder on the web. Get your own website
online in just 5 minutes with http://HighPowerSites.com at:
http://www.highpowersites.com
posted by Dennis Cheesman @ 5:24 AM,
